Case for spectacles, eyeglasses, and other articles.



L-. LAURANCE.

CASE FOR'SPECTACLES, EYEGLASSES, AND OTHER ARTICLES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY3I.'I9I7- 1,245,933. Patented Nov. 6, 1917.

LIONEL LAURANCE, OF LONDON, ENGLAND,

oAsE FOR srEcTAcLEs, EYEGLASSES, AND OTHER ARTICLES.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LIONEL LAURANCE, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 1 Temple House, Temple Avenue, London, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in Cases for Spectacles, Eyeglasses, and other Articles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in cases which are designed especially for con taining spectacles and eyeglasses although they are also suitable for holding other articles.

Various types of spectacle and like cases are known, among which may be mentioned the form in which the lid is secured to the body by a spring hinge which tends to hold it in the open position, a snap fastening being fitted to the front of the case to hold the lid closed. l/Vith this construction when the fastening is released the lid flies open and can only be closed by being pressed down again onto the catch. In another well-' known form of case a spring attachment is provided whereby the lid is held either in the fully open or the fully closed position, into which position it is snapped by the action of the spring when it has been moved by the user past a dead point in the direction of opening or closing as the case may be.

Now, my invention has for its object to provide a case which shall combine the ad vantages of these two known types and to this end I provide a case, of the kind in which the lid is snapped into the open and closed positions by a spring, with means for lifting the lid past the dead point when pressure is applied at a convenient point, at the back of the lid.

In a suitable arrangement for carrying out the invention the lid is provided with an arm or the like which projects below the hinge when the lid is closed and which is so arranged that pressure can be applied to it by the finger of the user in order to lift the lid upward until it passes the dead point of the snap-spring which then operates to snap and retain it open. For instance, the said arm may be an arm specially provided for the purpose or that to which the snapspring is attached and its inner or lower end may be arranged opposite a cut-away portion at the back of the body of the case, so that, when the lid is closed, the said end is exposed and can be pressed by the finger.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 6, 1917.

Application filed May 31, 1917. Serial no. 171,974.

In practice, the body and lid may be covered with the usual leather or like covering and this-covering may be furnished with a thickening at the point which has to bepressed in order to form a kind of button.

To enable my invention to be fully under-- stood I will describe it by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of one form of spectacle or eyeglass case made according to the invention and shown closed.

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2-2, Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing the case opened, and

Fig. 4: is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the case in the open position.

a is the body of the case which advantageously made of metal in the usual Way and b is the lid thereof which is hinged at 0 to the back of the body a. d is the spring which connects the body a and the lid Z) in such a manner that it holds the lid either in the closed position, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2, or in the open position, as indicated in Figs. 3 and 4, this construction being well known. I

e is the arm or the like which is secured to the underside of the lid, the said arm projecting below the hinge 0 when the lid is closed, as shown in Fig. 2, and projecting, in this closed position, through the cutaway portion f formed in the back of the body a of the case, and terminating in a looped portion forming a finger engaging member.

With this construction, as will be clearly understood, assuming that the lid is closed, as in Figs. 1 and 2, the case can be opened by pressure of the finger upon the looped portion of the arm 6 so as to force the lid upward until the dead point of the spring 93 is passed, whereupon the said spring pulls the lid fully open and retains it in the open position. The lid is closed in the usual way and is held in the closed position also by the said spring. The arrangement possesses the advantage that a person can open and shut the case by employing one hand only.

As above stated, the case may be, made either with or withouta leather cover and in the drawing the cover is not shown. Where such a cover is employed then it passes around the projecting member 0 so as to completely inclose the whole of the case and the said leather cover may then be furnished with a thickening at the point opposite the said member a or the equivalent so as to indicate the position at which pressure is to be applied.

It is to be understood that the means em ployed for lifting the lid may be varied in many ways, the essentialfeature of the invention being the combination in a spectacle or like case of a spring device which snaps the lid into the open and closed positions when a certain dead point has been passed by the lid and of means, acting upon the back of the lid, for lifting the latter past this dead point in the opening direction. 7

Claim:

A spectaele'case comprising a'body having an opening in its rear wall, a lid hinged to said body, a spring arranged Within the ease and connecting said lid and body for holding the lid in open and closed positions, and a finger engaging member secured to the underside of said lid and provided at its rear with a looped portion which extends through the body opening when the lid is in closed position, said looped portion being adapted to be forced forward for raising said lid.

LIONEL LAURANGE.

@opies of this patent may be obtained {or five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner oi Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

